Vox Populi (Beta Zi'nini Universe)
The Vox Populi (Latin for "Voice of the People") were a militant underground insurgency group led primarily by revolutionary Daisy Fitzroy. They were in open conflict with Zachary Hale Comstock and the Founders, rejecting their puritanical and xenophobic ideology. Though initially, the middle and upper classes of Columbia regarded the Vox as simply a worrisome nuisance, referring to them derisively as "anarchists", as Booker DeWitt progressed through Columbia, it became apparent that the city was on the verge of revolution, which eventually broke into an all-out destructive war. The Vox Populi soon degenerated and disbanded violently and all remnants of the revolutionaries were hunted down and eliminated by the Founders. It was soon succeeded by the Communist Party of Columbia. Background Led by Daisy Fitzroy, the Vox Populi first began as a protest group and a confederation of working-class citizens and oppressed groups, but as it became more organized, its members grew more militant. Driven underground by the Founders' response, the movement eventually abandoned its initial peaceful tactics in favor of retaliatory violence against the Founders. They had even set up a secret code, called the Vox Cipher, used to keep secrets hidden from their enemies. Though the Vox did not claim to adhere to any particular ideology, their original goal was to breach the divide between Columbia's privileged few and the rest, erasing the social and racial boundaries imposed by the Founders. As idealism turned to bitterness, however, the Vox simply sought to appropriate all that belonged to their oppressors. A member is heard shouting, "Your homes are ours! Your lives are ours! Your wives are ours! It all belongs to the Vox!" Once revolution broke out in Columbia, the Vox had shown their true colors. Driven by vengeance, they destroyed entire portions of the city, and vandalized the rest, executing anyone standing in their way. They also tortured innocent citizens they come across, inflicting upon them the same oppression they lived through several-fold. Vox Populi members would have been seen murdering civilians in Emporia. Recruitment The Vox Populi drew its main recruitment from Columbia's segregated communities. These were Irish, Asians, Blacks, and even Native Americans. Another recruitment source was the working class, in lower-class neighborhoods and market shops. Joining minorities within Columbia, there were supporters among the white population, including several whites pushing a black rights movement. Symbols Most of the Vox Populi's symbols exist to oppose those of the Founders: In stark contrast to the Founders' puritanism, the Vox adorn themselves with devil horns and hoods. In mockery of Jeremiah Fink's perception of workers as cattle, many Vox fighters wear helmets in the shape of bull heads. In opposition to the Founders' blue, the Vox's primary color is red. In combat, Vox fighters tend to imitate the battle cries of American Indians, one of the many groups the Founders attempted to eradicate. Later in the revolt, hijacked Motorized Patriot bear the features of Abraham Lincoln, a figure reviled by the Founders for his support of the oppressed. Some Vox fighters make use of clothing and equipment appropriated from the Founders, such as body armor and masks, which are decorated with their signature red paint. They perform similar modifications upon hijacked hovercrafts and Zeppelins, lashing long sheets of red cloth to their hulls in order to mark the vehicles' change of allegiance. Category:Factions Category:Terrorist Organization